The 48th annual Longs Peak Scottish Irish Highland Festival will take place this weekend in Estes Park, but the parade which has traditionally taken place on Elkhorn Avenue is being rerouted due to the downtown road construction.
“I just couldn’t have dancers going down the street with traffic cones,” said Peggy Sue Young, the organizer of the event. Although the roadwork is nearing completion, this past week construction workers were drilling through the newly laid black top to reveal utility hole covers, “I just could not take a chance,” said Young, fearful that the work would not be finished in time for the parade.
The parade will take place on Sunday as part of the inaugural salute to first responders and it will lead into the tattoo arena during the special matinee performance. “We want everyone to know we are not canceling the parade, or the festival. We are just rerouting the parade this year because of the street construction downtown,” said Young.
For many years, Young has wanted to recognize the work and sacrifice of first responders. This year’s festivities will feature a color guard presented by first responders and a helicopter will be on the field from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Sunday. First responders will also have reduced ticket pricing for the Sunday tattoo matinee which will begin at 1:30 p.m.
A mission to serve the first responder community through Restoration Ranch Colorado
The opportunity to recognize first responders “just fell into place” this year, said Young when two friends of hers, Krug and Kaylyn Kruger, who had owned property at Solitude Cabins and Lodge in Estes Park introduced Young to Kathryn Severns Avery.
The Krugers’ son is a police officer who experienced a traumatic shooting event while on duty several years ago. Avery’s husband, Christopher, was killed in Lakewood, Colo. on Dec. 11, 2020, when his car was struck by a car driven by a man who had just committed a robbery. The driver and two accomplices were convicted and are serving time.
The Krugers and Avery bonded over their shared concern about the impact of stress on first responders. Avery decided to channel her grief over her husband’s death to serving people who work in first responder roles. The first responders who came to her husband’s aid and then had to tell her about the crash and her husband’s death. She says they did their jobs with such dignity and compassion.
Avery sold a property she and her husband owned in Maine, and with money she inherited from her father she established Restoration Ranch Colorado, a sanctuary for first responders to spend time with family members, find respite, and nurture themselves.
Watching what their police officer son had gone through, the Krugers wanted to be a part of the vision for Restoration Ranch. They signed on as managers of the 40-acre property. For the privacy and respect of the first responders who reserve time at Restoration Ranch, a 501(c)(3), the exact location of the mountain retreat is kept private, but first responders can contact the managers and learn about making a reservation.
Avery said there is always a question, “what’s the catch?” There is none. “There is no cost. There is no sales pitch to become a time share owner or anything,” said Avery whose connection to Estes Park goes back to 1942 when her father cleaned cabins at the YMCA before he entered the service during World War II. “This is about giving back for the work they do,” she said.
Avery said the connection to honoring first responders at the Longs Peak Scottish Irish Highland Festival is a natural fit. “When you think particularly back with the Scottish and Irish connections in all of the first responder professions, there may not be as much here in Colorado, but certainly back east, you have the pipe and drum corps in every police station and fire department, It just seemed a natural affiliation,” said Avery.
The Restoration Ranch staff will have a table at the Sunday matinee tattoo to promote awareness of the opportunity for first responders to book time at Restoration Ranch. Individuals and their families can reserve a two-night stay at no cost. The Ranch is currently booked into early 2025.
In addition, Restoration Ranch also has private short-term rental homes available for first responders at a reduced rate for those who would like to opt to stay in an STR. There are many STR owners who have made their short-term rental property available for the use of first responders as a way to thank those who put so much on the line, said Avery.
Activities during Scots Fest
This year’s festival will feature the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Pipe Band and Dancers and the U.S. Army West Point Hellcats, a field music group comprised of bugles, piccolos, and drums, which serves as a showpiece for the U.S. Army and the U.S. Military.
The Hellcats earned their nickname because the group plays the morning wake-up call every day at West Point. The Army’s first and only remaining field music group, the Hellcats trace their heritage back to the American Revolution when General George Washington established the garrison of West Point and appointed a fifer and drummer for signaling in camp.
The Black Watch Army Cadet Force Pipes and Drums, one of eight Scottish Battalion Cadet Pipes and Drums, will perform during the tattoo events and will also do a performance at the Estes Park Elementary School. The Army Cadet Force is comprised of 12- to 18-year-olds who learn to read maps and navigate the field without being detected, a useful military skill. Young said sharing the Festival with students is a way to give back to the community and inspire youth to consider learning to play the bagpipes.
The Swing Dolls, a 1940s Andrews Sisters tribute trio, will perform, along with the Fountain City Brass Band, and the Estes Park International Tattoo Highland Dance Team.
The Estes Park International Tattoo will take place at Stanley Park Arena, 1209 Manford Ave. on Friday and Saturday, Sept. 6 and 7 at 7:30, and on Sunday, Sept. 8 at 1:30 p.m.
The highland athletic competitions will take place Saturday, Sept. 7 and Sunday, Sept. 8. Check-in begins at 7:30 a.m. and the events will begin at 8:30 a.m.
The Celtic Folk Concert will take place on Friday evening at the Event Center at 7:30 p.m. and will feature On The Lash, Harp Twins with the Volfgang Twins, and Skyrie. The Rock Concert will take place Saturday at the Event Center at 7:30 pm.
The Longs Peak Scottish Irish Festival is not a Town of Estes Park sponsored event, said Young. It is and always has been a privately organized event which was started by Young’s father, James Durwood, a dentist who built the waterwheel building and glockenspiel on West Elkhorn Avenue.
Durwood thought that Labor Day weekend did not need to mean the end of summer, so he established the Celtic themed Scots Fest to extend the visitor season into September. Durwood died May 7, 2023, at the age of 88.
Because canons are discharged and other loud noises are made during the tattoo and event, organizers of the three-day event want attendees to know before coming that no animals will be allowed on the festival field or in the arena during the event.
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Did I miss where the parade is actually being rerouted to?
When I asked, I was told the parade will march into the arena from the events field.
Where does the parade start? How is the Public going to see the parade?
Sounds like a great event honoring first responders. Thank you for letting me know the plans for Sunday!